The 2005 update to the California Water Plan resulted in a recommendation to increase Tribal involvement in statewide, regional, and local water planning. Update 2009 convened a Tribal Communications Committee to advise the Department of Water Resources on how to better contact and communicate with the more than 160 Native American Tribes in California. As a result, the California Tribal Water Summit (TWS) was created, with the first summit taking place on November 2009. The goal of the TWS is to create a roadmap with strategies for preserving Native water rights and providing for the sustainable management of California's sacred waters.
The next Tribal Water Summit will take place on April 11-13, 2023, at the New Natural Resources Building, 715 P Street Sacramento CA 95838. The Summit will convene Tribal, State, and Federal leaders to discuss water issues and strategies towards watershed resilience of California’s sacred waters. Registration is CLOSED; space is limited, and priority will be given to Tribal leaders and Federal/State representatives. Proceedings from this Summit will help inform State water policy and advance issues of equity, access and incorporation of Tribal Ecological Knowledge in the California Water Plan Update 2023.
The California Tribal Water Summit Planning Team is working on hosting the 2023 Summit. We are looking forward to seeing you here on April 11.
The 2023 Summit Program is now available. Breakout/workshop abstracts are also available.
Special Tribal Water Summit meeting backgrounds are available to use for your next meeting.
You can donate and help spread the date for the 4th Summit.
If you have any questions, you can contact the team at TribalWaterSummit@water.ca.gov.
The 2018 Tribal Water Summit took place on April 4-5, 2018, at the McClellan Conference Center. The 2018 Summit Proceedings are available now. If you would like copies of the presentations or if you have any questions or if you are looking for something in particular, please email us at tribalwatersummit@water.ca.gov.
During the Summit, we debuted “Climate Conversations,” a series of short videos featuring tribal members discussing their perspectives of and experiences with a changing climate, and how it is affecting their livelihoods and culture. The video can be viewed below.
Summit materials and handouts:
Main Plenary
Opening
Indigenous Rights to Water
Tribal & Agency Roundtable Sessions
Break Out Sessions
Water Infrastructure
Federal Water Rights
Legislative Update
Water Quality
Prop 1 / IRWM
Main Plenary
Governance Issues
Tribal & Agency Roundtable Session
Closing Remarks
Break Out Sessions
Water & Food Sovereignty
Indigenous Communities Climate Change Assessment
GIS Mapping
Traditional Water Use & Subsistence Fish Consumption
Conservation Easements
Salton Sea
The theme of the 2013 Summit was "California Indigenous Rights, Uses and Management of Water and Land: Leveraging the strengths and resources of Tribal, State and Federal agencies through collaboration." The summit showcased three topics: tribal ecological knowledge; indigenous rights to water; and water management and land use with featured keynote speakers including the Governor's Tribal Advisor, Cynthia Gomez.
The theme of the 2009 Summit was "Protect Our Sacred Water." The summit provided an opportunity for the highest Tribal and State government officials to explore common interests, discuss policy issues, identify solutions, and promoted dialogue among agencies and programs responsible for water resources management in California.
For general information regarding the summit, email us at tribalwatersummit@water.ca.gov.